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Selium McGary (1831-1910)
title=Biographical History of La Crosse, Monroe and Juneau Counties, Wisconsin. Containing Portraits of all the Presidents of the United States, with accompanying Biographies of each; Engravings of Prominent Citizens of the Counties, with Personal Histories of many of the Early Settlers and Leading Families date=1892 publisher=Lewis Publishing Co. place=Chicago, IL pages=746-747}} |contributors=Bruce Kendall |long_name=Selium McGary |birth_year=1831 |birth_month=5 |birth_day=13 |birth_county=Chittenden County, Vermont |birth_nation-subdiv1=Vermont |birth_nation=United States |death_year=1910 |death_month=7 |death_day=17 |death_locality=Norwalk, Wisconsin |death_county=Monroe County, Wisconsin |death_nation-subdiv1=Wisconsin |death_nation=United States |death_sources=Monroe County, Wisconsin, Registry of Deaths: Vol. 5, p. 177 |ifmarried-g1=Yes |wedding1_year=1851 |wedding1_nation-subdiv1=Ohio |wedding1_nation=United States |wedding1_sources=Biographical History of La Crosse, Monroe and Juneau Counties, Wisconsin, p. 747 |ifmarried-g2=No |remains_year=1910 |remains_month=7 |remains_day=20 |remains_street=Boedeker (Pilgrim Home) Cemetery |remains_locality=Norwalk, Wisconsin |remains_county=Monroe County, Wisconsin |remains_nation-subdiv1=Wisconsin |remains_nation=United States |remains_sources= title=Monroe County, Wisconsin, Registry of Deaths vol=5 page=177}}Headstone transcriptions of Pilgrim Home Cemetery, Monroe Co., WI, Url: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/wi/monroe/cemeteries/Pilgrim-cem.txt |globals= |birth_sources_secondary=''Biographical History of La Crosse, Monroe and Juneau Counties, Wisconsin'' |death_causes=concussion due to fall }} Biography In about 1838 Selium moved with his parents and paternal grandparents from Milton, Vermont to Ohio.The Norwalk Star Friday, July 22, 1910. P. 4. The family moved several times, living in Medina County, Ohio, and Alleghena City, Pennsylvania, before settling in Berlin Township, Erie County, Ohio.The Norwalk Star Friday, July 22, 1910. P. 4; In 1850 Selium was living with his parents and working as a laborer, but after his wedding in 1851 he moved to Wisconsin with his grandparents and brothers, settling in Monroe County in September 1852.The Norwalk Star Friday, July 22, 1910. P. 4 He was one of the first settlers in Ridgeville Township, and he and his wife steadily expanded their farm, purchasing adjacent tracts from the Lands Office in Lacrosse throughout the 1850s. His brothers also settled nearby, and in fall 1853 his parents also moved to the farm. During the civil war, Selium served in Company A, Fifty-second Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, enlisting on March 14, 1865 and mustering out with the rest of the unit on July 25. Vol. 2, p. 911. The regiment did not engage in enemy action; they were initially posted to Holden, MO, where they guarded construction workers on the Pacific Railroad, and then moved to Fort Leavenworth, KS in late June 1865, remaining there until the unit was mustered out in July''The Civil War Archive'' http://www.civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/unwiinf3.htm#52ndinf. Near the end of his service, Selium developed kidney stones, probably caused by dehydration during the long march to Ft. Leavenworth. These frequently incapacitated him for the rest of his life.Civil War Invalid Pension file In the early 1870s Selium and his neighbor, C.G. Hettman, subdivided portions of their farms to create the village of Norwalk (Main Street marks the original property boundary). This occurred after Selium agreed to sell part of his property as a right of way for the Chicago and Northwestern Railway for its route from Baraboo to Sparta - original plans to route it through the village of Ridgeville were abandoned when a landowner demanded an exorbitant price for his land (eventually the village of Ridgeville faded away). __SHOWFACTBOX__